Some ice creams are worth screaming about. As a child, I was spoiled by occasional summer evening outings to a dairy outside Pittsburgh where the ice cream was made on site from real cream and other delicious ingredients. I was small. A single scoop—usually chocolate–in a cone was enough.

On rare occasions, after a main meal at mid-day, we’d go to the dairy for our evening meal, chocolate milkshakes all around. Worked for me…

However, I moved away.

As I mentioned at Mystery Lover’s Kitchen recently, I discovered hot fudge sundaes in which the fudge was thick and semi-sweet. That was in Michigan.

However, I moved away.

A few years ago, in New York state, I discovered another dairy that used old fashioned equipment—and real cream—to make ice cream, in more flavors than I had time to taste. There was nothing quite like their ice cream…

However, I moved away.

My third Threadville Mystery, Thread and Buried, hit store shelves yesterday. Thread and Buried features buried treasure, a years-ago mystery, and a body shrouded in materials from Threadville Shops and left the backyard of my main character, Willow.

About the same time, two kittens mysteriously show up.

Could any of these things be connected?

Poor Willow! When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping.

For ice cream.

Willow’s apartment and machine embroidery boutique, In Stitches, are in the village nicknamed Threadville. Willow, her dogs, and her sidekick, Haylee, can walk down the street past the fabric store, yarn shop, notions shop, quilt store, and home décor shop to a wide, sandy beach on Lake Erie. A pleasant walk along that beach takes them to a colony of lakeside cottages where the residents spend a hard day at the beach and then cook their supper on the barbecue. For dessert, the cottagers become formal. They slip T-shirts over bathing suits and flip-flops onto feet, and they stroll to the closest ice cream stand.

And that’s where Willow and Haylee (and the dogs) head for dessert, too.

I won’t give anything away, but I have to say that those trips sometimes yield other things besides dessert, and too often for Willow and Haylee, the trips don’t yield any ice cream at all . . .

I now live close to similar Lake Erie resort towns and cottage colonies. Unlike Willow, however, I can’t walk to an ice cream stand unless I want to spend most of the night getting home (hmmmm, come to think of it, that kind of happens to Willow…) I can drive to several ice cream stands where a “single” scoop equals about a quart of ice cream. I can hear my parents’ voices in my mind. “Eat it quickly before it melts.” (And then the inevitable, “You ate too fast. That’s why you have a headache.”)

Another of the great things about living near a lake is that friends have been known to take me by boat for ice cream, though I have to admit that my boating ability is severely lacking. Last summer, I nearly got tangled in that ladder going down the side of the wharf.
Like Willow, I sometimes have trouble deciding which flavor to choose, and I often fall back on an old favorite—mint chocolate chip.

You thought I was going to say chocolate, didn’t you?

Can you decide which flavor of ice cream to order? Do you have a favorite ice cream stand?

Driving up and down the Susquehanna nearby, you may even catch a glimpse of the cottage that inspired Willow’s Blueberry Cottage, if flood waters haven’t, ahem, convinced it to move away.

~Janet

About This AuthorDire Threads, the first book in Janet Bolin’s Threadville Mystery series received a nomination for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel. It was also shortlisted for the 2012 Bony Blithe. Janet’s second book,Threaded for Trouble was shortlisted for the 2013 Bony Blithe. Her third book, Thread and Buried came out yesterday! All of her books can be ordered at your favorite bookstore.

In Threadville, Pennsylvania, known for its textile art courses and shops, everyone’s stories are connected by a common thread—even the ones ending in murder…

Every town has a legend. For Threadville, it’s the story of Snoozy Gallagher, the hotel owner who disappeared thirty years ago with a bag full of stolen jewelry, never to be heard from again. That is, until now—when Snoozy’s loot is discovered buried behind Willow Vanderling’s embroidery shop In Stitches.

When villagers mysteriously become ill, and a body shrouded in materials from Threadville shops appears in the exact spot where the treasure was—along with two abandoned kittens—Willow needs answers. The random events are too coincidental to be unrelated, but Willow will have to act quickly to unravel the deadly mystery, or she might be the killer’s next victim…

Dollycas’s ThoughtsI have loved each and every trip to Threadville. Bolin just keeps getting better and better at keeping us In Stitches. This time she pulls out the stops with a village legend that gives us a mystery tangled in another mystery and then some.

All our favorite characters return. Opal, Naomi and Edna are in rare form and the center of a couple of surprises. Clay is doing some work for Willow so he is always around as the almost romance is set to simmer. Haylee continues to help Willow to NOT stay out the investigation and Tally-Ho and Sally-Forth are along on the “walks”. Sally even finds some new friends.

This was a book I just could not put down. I was up reading late into the night and then the author left me wanting more. The last chapter, the last line, leaves us with a smile 🙂 The next installment can’t come fast enough for me!

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

We go to Kimball Farms in MA for good old fashioned ice cream. My favorite is hard to choose, usually coffee, but they have great orange pineapple, frozen pudding and in the fall it’s either pumpkin or ginger! Dee

Guess I would have to say Chocolate Chip is my favorite ice cream. Favorite places to get it at is either in Nashville, IN. or up in Door County, WI!! Have been looking forward to this newest addition to Threadville series!!!

My favorite ice cream is pistachio I especially love gelato but I remember stopping at a Rusty Custard Stand years ago with my grandfather and getting a vanilla custard used to think it was the best in the world, always looked forward to that trip..

My favorite flavor right now is chocolate with chunks of chewy chocolate brownie pieces. I don’t know if any stands sell that kind, but that is what tempts me the most at the grocery store. Probably my favorite ice cream stand is the one in Ed’s Pitstop gas station in Birchwood, Wisconsin. The picture of you in front of the ice cream stand made me think of a place on Lake Mille Lacs in Minnesota, but I have only been by that in the fall, after the summer season was over. But it looks like a fun place to visit.

My favorite Ice Cream is Raspberry twist at our local dairy bar. LOL..I also have a taste for Butter Brickle hard Ice Cream on a cone from there..I’m in the Southern Tier of NY so we did get hit hard with flooding several years in a row. I know some of the places you mentioned in your interview..lol.

rojo13864, the Southern Tier has not forgotten about ice cream stands, one more thing that makes the area wonderful. The floods were really something,though. Mmmmm. Butter Brickle. Haven’t thought about that flavor for years!

My all time favorite is Mint Chocolate Chip although I also love Rocky Road. There are no ice cream stands around- I have to buy my ice cream at the grocery store. Looking forward to this next installment in the Threadville Mystery Series!

Peggy, yes, don’t tell Willow, but she could make her own ice cream cones. But I think she likes those strolls on the beach with Haylee, Tally-Ho, and Sally-Forth. Of course, she does sometimes get distracted and end up with no ice cream. So she should stock it and a box of cones at home!

The Threadville Mystery series sounds very interesting. Since I am a sewer and quilter, I will definitely be putting this series on my TBR list. Thanks for sharing.
My favorite ice cream flavor is chocolate.

I lived on a Dairy Farm ( for about 6 years )… when I was younger…lots of fun! ( plus some hard work too ). My family had about 60 head of cows that they milked twice a day, but we didnt make ice cream…….=(
My favorite ice cream is Chocolate Marshmallow ( no nuts.. ) and..my favorite ice cream stands are the “Dairy Queen” stands / restaurants that we have here in Kansas..

Love your “Threadville” series,..I have read the first one – and am anxious to read the rest of the series! =)

MMMMM Ice cream—I remember the homemade ice cream from my childhood. It was out of this world and of course, I never got the recipe from my mother. My favorite ice cream is dark cherry—maybe with a little chocolate drizzled over it. No ice cream shops near here so I just must make due with the grocery store.suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com

That homemade ice cream was delicious! I remember one vanilla one that was especially yummy. Maybe it had something to do with waiting, and taking turns with the crank? All that exercise–and anticipation!

Funny, my default flavor is mint chocolate chip too! Sometimes I get more adventurous, but not often. There aren’t really any good ice cream shops near me. Can’t wait to read more of Willow’s adventures! Thanks!

Thanks, HoldenJ. Willow’s adventures involve ice cream, well, she hopes… Strangely, I I never buy mint chocolate chip in the grocery store. Maybe the ones near me don’t carry it? But when it comes time to choose an ice cream cone, I often end up with mint chocolate chip.

I have several favorites Mint Chocolate Chip, Butter Pecan and Cherry Chocolate Cordial- mmm good. In Warren, we have Handle’s Ice Cream which is all homemade – originated in Youngstown and was the best kept secret for many years. Located in an alley you really had to know it was there to find it – the parking lot was always full. Another more recent favorite is Katy’s Korner – another winner.
I can remember (ouch – going back to the 60’s) when one of the downtown Youngstown department store restaurants had Pecan Butter Balls. It was a Ball of Vanilla Ice Cream rolled in crushed pecans and served with Chocolate Syrup over it. That was dinner a number of times when I was going to college.
Strouss-Hershberg’s Department Store had a Chocolate Malted (kind of like Wendy’s Frosty but much better. That was a special treat if you were really good on a shopping trip.
Thanks for bringing back the memories and for a wonderful series.

I go to two places. The closest one is called The Snowman. Been there for maybe 50+ years. No special flavors there for me. The second place is called The Ice Cream Man and takes 35 minutes to get there. They were featured on the Food Network channel with Bobby Flay’s Throwdown. I love their Hugh’s Chocolate Overload ice cream. It’s dark chocolate ice cream with chocolate syrup swirls and chocolate chips.

I love coffee ice cream and a summer ice-cream place in Mansfield, Pa called Little Half PInt has Capuicino Crunch so I sometimes order that. If I watch diet more – I order sugar free butter pecan or the other sugar free. Though there was a place in New Hope PA that made the best rum raison and other interesting flavors.

Yes I have a hard time choosing a flavor of ice cream. It depends were I go for ice cream, some places don’t have many flavors. Diary Queen is vanilla, Country Style is chocolate, but if I go to Whitey’s I’m lost. These are my favorite ice cream places to go.
Your book sound really good, like to read it. Thanks for the giveaway.
Donna Harris

Choosing an ice cream flavor has always been hard for me, but there are some I tend to like: cherry with dark chocolate chips, Moose Tracks (or something like it), and anything with chocolate and caramel in it. Sometimes I have a hankering for mint chocolate chip (preferably without the green dye.)

My favorite ice cream joint is COWS in Cavendish, PEI (although the one in Banff, Alberta, is pretty good, too.) And while COWS has a lot of terrific flavors, I really love their Island blueberry flavor. Too bad I’m not likely to be in Canada anytime soon!

I grew up with a Thrifty Drug Store in our neighborhood and I do not know what brand they served, but there was no beating it. Each month they would have a special flavor, but my diehard favorites were always pistachio and bing cherry and every Thanksgiving time they had pumpkin custard . . . oh yeah! To top it all off it was only a nickle a scoop – of course over the years that kept going up, but when I was little if I had a nickle – I headed for ice cream LOL Thank you for the smiles 🙂

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Gilian Baker

Former English professor turned blogger, Jade Blackwell, is enjoying her predictable routine when trouble comes knocking in the form of an old friend and colleague. Unbeknownst to Jade, Gwendolyn Hexby is no longer the successful academic she once knew and trusted—she is now following a new calling as a psychic medium, a contentious career that flies in the face of the logic and deductive reasoning Jade values.

At first, Jade welcomes the visit, but things soon turn bizarre as Gwendolyn brings only disorder, danger and disruption. When a murder is prophesied, and a beloved pillar of the Aspen Falls’ community winds up dead, Gwendolyn becomes Sheriff Ross Lawson’s prime suspect.

To get Gwendolyn out of hot water, and more importantly, out of her house, Jade attempts to prove her friend’s innocence. Jade believes she’s finally discovered the truth, but is soon brought back to reality when she learns all is not as it seems in the realm of the metaphysical. Not even murder.

Return to the Jade Blackwell Cozy Mystery Series in Murder Over Medium, as Jade jumps into the fray of a territory not governed by logic or reason—in either this world or the next.

Anna Celeste Burke

Jessica’s ex-husband, James Harper, and her mother, Alexis, are in big trouble in A Dead Mother. Family dysfunction, infidelity, murder, and mayhem—what else can you expect from members of the rich and famous who move in Jessica Huntington’s circles? An arraignment in court goes off the rails after Jim Harper’s Bel Air mansion is trashed and a man is left fighting for his life. Jessica’s love life almost veers off track, too, as she struggles to balance job, family, sleuthing, and her attraction to Attorney Paul Worthington and Detective Frank Fontana. When the body of a prominent member of the Palm Desert community is found dead on the side of the road, Jessica gives up hope that this year will be better than the last. It’s a three-ring-circus of calamities as Jessica and her friends get pulled into another whirlwind whodunit. There are plenty of well-heeled heels to choose from among the suspects with murderous motives: love, lust, lucre, and loathing.

In good spirits at a gala marking his retirement, Dave Rollins disappears later that night. His beautiful home overlooking the Pacific Ocean is trashed—not just searched, but vandalized, too. The maestro’s old friend and boss, Max Marley, wants answers!

At the crack of dawn, Max calls Georgie Shaw and Detective Jack Wheeler distraught, demanding that they help solve the mystery of the missing maestro. When Dave Rollins’ body is found on the rocks below his Malibu cliffside estate, Georgie and Jack are pulled into another whodunit.

Who killed Dave Rollins? Did a secret from the maestro's youth catch up with him decades later? Or did a scorned woman, a jealous rival, a disturbed fan or someone else murder the maestro?

Bethany Blake

The Tail Waggin’ Winterfest is the highlight of the season in the famously pet-friendly Pocono Mountains town of Sylvan Creek. But despite attractions like an ice sculpture display, a dogsled race, and gourmet hot chocolate, Daphne Templeton finds herself annoyed by TV producer Lauren Savidge, who’s filming the festivities. She’s critical, controlling, and as chilly as the January air. Daphne would like to tell her to go jump in a lake—and as a matter of fact, that’s exactly what they’re both going to do . . .

It’s the first-ever polar bear plunge in Lake Wallapawakee, and Daphne and Lauren are among the eighty or so people who charge into the frigid water to raise funds for animals in need. Daphne makes it back to shore—with the help of a mysterious St. Bernard—but Lauren is dragged out stone cold dead. Now, with her trusty basset hound Socrates at her side, Daphne intends to assist Detective Jonathan Black in his investigation—whether he wants her to or not . . .

Dawn Eastman

Katie LeClair has finally settled down as the new doctor in Baxter, MI. After years of moving, schooling, and training, she wants nothing more than to find a place she can call home, and a small town outside of Ann Arbor seemed perfect.

Katie quickly gets to work in building a life for herself in Baxter, and beyond reviving her love life, she also finds a pair of business partners in a team of father and son family practitioners. But that idyllic dream is immediately shattered when one of her patients is found dead. That wouldn't be the worst thing, except the death is ruled a suicide, and as evidence has it, the suicide was a result of the medication Katie had prescribed. But she doesn't remember writing it.

When a closer investigation reveals it was murder, Katie is catapulted into an off-the-books investigation that leads her down a dark path of past secrets. But someone is willing to kill to keep part of the town's history in the shadows, and Katie must race to find out who before it's too late in nationally bestselling author Dawn Eastman's riveting series debut Unnatural Causes.

Debra E. Marvin

Inspired by the famous Girl Detective, the members of the Olentangy Heights Girls' Detective Society, affectionately known as the Nosy Parkers, spent their formative years studying criminology, codes, and capers. Unfortunately, opportunities to put their unique skills to work were thin on the ground in the post-war boom of their little corner of suburbia and they eventually grew up to pursue more sensible careers. Until...

Heather Munro’s youthful devotion to The Girl Detective led to a passion for digging around in history. Now pursuing her Master's Degree in Celtic Studies, Heather must balance exploring Edinburgh with her determination to excel in her all–male classes at the University. Unfortunately, on her first night working in the Archives room, she discovers the dead body of a visiting professor, the same would-be lothario she’d hoped never to see again.

As clues come to light, it’s clear someone hopes to frame Heather for the murder. Besides her quirky landlady, whom can she trust? How can she clear her name? The police and the American Consul have plenty of suspects, but only two seem to have both motive and opportunity: Heather and the quiet Scottish historian she longs to trust.

Susan Boles

Four suspects lying,
Three sleuths a sleuthing
Two clues a hiding
And a very, very dead body.

It's the Christmas season in Mercy, Mississippi. But things are far from jolly.

For Vlad Templeton the sleepy little town where he spent his childhood provides the perfect place to conduct his state funded sleep study. But when the local bank manager, who was participating in the study, is found dead on his doorstep, is it a set up...or is Vlad somehow involved?

But, when someone makes an attempt on Lily Gayle's and Dixie's life, the two realize they better move fast....or they might end up sleeping forever.

Tracee de Hahn

Swiss-American police officer Agnes Lüthi is on leave in Lausanne, Switzerland, recovering from injuries she sustained in her last case, when an old colleague invites her to the world’s premier watch and jewelry trade show at the grand Messe Basel Exhibition Hall. Little does Agnes know, another friend of hers, Julien Vallotton, is at the same trade show—and he’s looking for Agnes. Julien Vallotton was friends with Guy Chavanon, a master of one of Switzerland’s oldest arts: watchmaking. Chavanon died a week ago, and his daughter doesn’t believe his death was accidental. Shortly before he died, Chavanon boasted that he’d discovered a new technique that would revolutionize the watchmaking industry, and she believes he may have been killed for it. Reluctantly, Agnes agrees to investigate his death. But the world of Swiss watchmaking is guarded and secretive, and before she realizes it, Agnes may be walking straight into the path of a killer.

Suzanne Trauth

Restaurant manager Dodie O'Dell's themed food ideas have been called cute, clever, and delicious, but never revolutionary—until now. Dodie's Windjammer Restaurant is stocking the Etonville Little Theatre's concession stand with colonial-era desserts and drinks: Swamp Yankee applesauce cake, pumpkin bread, hot cider punch, and mulled wine to complement the latest production. A local playwright has adapted Thornton Wilder's Our Town into Eton Town, shifting the story to colonial America and the founding of Etonville, New Jersey, shortly after the Revolutionary War.

On opening night, hours before the curtain rises, Dodie runs into an agitated actress backstage with blood on her hands. Then a stranger is found among the chairs set for a graveyard scene with a knife in his chest. The show will not go on—the theatre is now a crime scene. Hoping to clear the red-handed suspect, Dodie returns to the role of amateur sleuth to mull over the clues and beat the backstage stabber to the punch—before someone else becomes history . . .

Cindy Brown

Actress and part-time PI Ivy Meadows has been hired to uncover the cause of the creepy accidents that plague the roadshow The Wizard: A Space OZpera and find out who dropped a chandelier on the Wicked Witch of the East.

Was it the ghost who haunts the Grand Phoenician Theatre? A “wicked witch” in the cast? Or is it someone—or something—more sinister?

It’s Ivy’s most personal case so far.

Her best friend Candy, who’s touring with the show, is caught in a downward spiral of self-destruction, and is in more danger than she knows.

To save her friend and the show, Ivy must answer even tougher questions: Do spirits really exist? What is real beauty? What does friendship mean?

Ivy needs to learn the answers, and fast—before Candy reaches the point of no return.

Mary Feliz

As a professional organizer, Maggie McDonald brings order to messy situations. But when a good friend becomes a murder suspect, surviving the chaos is one tall task . . .
Despite a looming deadline, Maggie thinks she has what it takes to help friends Jason and Stephen unclutter their large Victorian in time for its scheduled renovation. But before she can fill a single bin with unused junk, Jason leaves for Texas on an emergency business trip, Stephen’s injured mastiff limps home—and Stephen himself lands in jail for murder. Someone killed the owner of a local Chinese restaurant and stuffed him in the freezer. Stephen, caught at the crime scene covered in blood, is the number one suspect. Now Maggie must devise a strategy to sort through secrets and set him free—before she’s tossed into permanent storage next .

Lena Gregory

For Florida diner owner Gia Morelli, there’s no such thing as too much breakfast—unless it kills you . . .

When Gia Morelli’s marriage falls apart, she knows it’s time to get out of New York. Her husband was a scam artist who swindled half the millionaires in town, and she doesn’t want to be there when they decide to take revenge. On the spur of the moment, she follows her best friend to a small town in Central Florida, where she braves snakes, bears, and giant spiders to open a cheery little diner called the All-Day Breakfast Café. Owning a restaurant has been her lifelong dream, but it turns into a nightmare the morning she opens her dumpster and finds her ex-husband crammed inside. As the suspect du jour, Gia will have to scramble fast to prove her innocence before a killer orders another cup of murder . . .

Daryl Wood Gerber

As the annual Renaissance Fair comes to Crystal Cove, Jenna Hart’s Cookbook Nook is packed with tasty treats and all things medieval, while her pal Bailey is ready to swoon over her upcoming nuptials at a local vineyard. But when the two friends discover the body of the vineyard’s owner bludgeoned by a winepress, all their merriment fades, along with their hopes for a vintage year.

Which churlish varlet did the deed? Was it the victim’s errant brother, who stood to inherit the vineyards? Or the owner’s crestfallen ex-girlfriend? Mayhap it was the newly arrived comely wench, or her jealous husband. Fie on them all! Verily, Jenna can’t rest until justice is served, and she vows to track down the killer. But can she sniff out the truth before the villainous culprit strikes again?

Laura Childs – Tea Shop Mysteries

Theodosia Browning investigates a Charleston steeped in tradition and treachery in the latest Tea Shop Mystery from New York Times bestselling author Laura Childs.

While viewing the harbor's Gaslights and Galleons Parade from the widow's walk of Timothy Neville's Charleston mansion, local banker Carson Lanier seemingly tumbles over a narrow railing, then plunges three stories to his death. But a tragic accident becomes something much more sinister when it's discovered that the victim was first shot with a bolt from a crossbow.

At the request of the mansion owner, Theodosia investigates the tragedy and is soon neck deep in suspects. An almost ex-wife, a coworker, a real estate partner--all had motives for killing the luckless banker, but one resorted to murder to settle accounts.

Sharon Pape

Kailyn Wilde enjoys running her shop, Abracadabra, in the quaint New York hamlet of New Camel, where she lives with her six cats. Her family’s been here for centuries, and she’d like to keep up the tradition. But the place may never be the same if a big hotel gets built, so she does her civic duty and attends a town meeting along with her aunt Tilly . . . and Merlin. Yes, that Merlin—though he gets introduced to folks as her “distant English cousin.” The wizard is pretty grumpy about being transported here, but there are things about the modern world he doesn’t mind—like pizza.

Kailyn was prepared for a heated debate about the hotel, but she wasn’t expecting murder. When Tilly finds the body of a board member outside the schoolhouse, Kailyn doesn’t want any suspicion cast on the wrong person. She plans to crack this case, even if she has to talk to every living soul in town—plus a few departed ones . . .

Tonya Kappes

Too many cooks in the kitchen spoil the broth. And let me tell you, this broth is in trouble. Get ready for a Southern showdown.

The residents of Cottonwood, Kentucky are sent into a tizzy when the Culinary Channel comes to town to film an episode of Southern Home Cookin’ with celebrity chef Frank Von Lee.

Especially Sheriff Kenni Lowry.

Her mama’s award-winning chicken pot pie is what brought Frank to town, and they don’t make hair in the South bigger than her mama’s ego after the news.

When Frank Von Lee is found dead from food poisoning and the most likely culprit is Mama’s chicken pot pie, Kenni’s poppa, the former sheriff, comes back from the Great Beyond to assist in the investigation.

But nothing’s prepared Kenni for such a personal tie to a case, and she finds herself pushing the limits of the laws she’s sworn to protect.

This book’s so delicious it’ll make your mouth water and leave you hankerin’ for more.

R. L. Syme

Just when Vangie Vale's life was getting back to normal...After a murder that rocked her little Rocky Mountain tourist town, she found herself in the middle of another murder... as the chief suspect.

Vangie stood shocked on the side of the curb as the sheriff stretched yellow crime scene tape around the front of her new bakery. Wouldn't this make a lovely headline in next week's paper: Local Baker Kills Parishioner With Pudding. Vangie's road back to good graces as a part-time pastor was bumpy enough already. This would be a road block. Can't have that.

Jo-Ann Lamon Reccoppa

Crime reporter Colleen Caruso has an appetite for romance … and trouble. When someone tries to poison Ken Rhodes (her handsome boss and boyfriend), Colleen vows to hunt down the culprit and serve them up to the police. She’s whisked away into the scrumptious world of restaurants and gourmet food as she tangles with four culinary divas from Ken’s past.

Trouble is, Colleen doesn’t know when to turn down the heat.

Is this Jersey Girl’s investigation a recipe for disaster?
Or will the poisoner get their just desserts?

Heather Weidner

Private investigator Delanie Fitzgerald, and her computer hacker partner, Duncan Reynolds, are back for more sleuthing in The Tulip Shirt Murders. When a local music producer hires the duo to find out who is bootlegging his artists’ CDs, Delanie uncovers more than just copyright thieves. And if chasing bootleggers isn’t bad enough, local strip club owner and resident sleaze, Chaz Smith, pops back into Delanie’s life with more requests. The police have their man in a gruesome murder, but the loud-mouthed strip club owner thinks there is more to the open and shut case. Delanie and Duncan link a series of killings with no common threads. And they must put the rest of the missing pieces together before someone else is murdered.

The Tulip Shirt Murders is a fast-paced mystery that appeals to readers who like a strong female sleuth with a knack for getting herself in and out of humorous situations such as larping and trading elbow jabs with roller derby queens.

Gayle Leeson

The owner of a delightful Southern café tastes the sharp sting of suspicion in this delectable comfort food mystery . . .It’s fall in Winter Garden, Virginia, and business at Amy Flowers’ Down South Café has never been better. So when struggling beekeeper Stuart Landon asks Amy to sell some of his honey, she’s happy to help. The jars of honey are a sweet success, but their partnership is cut short when Amy discovers Landon’s body outside the café early one morning.

As Amy tries to figure out who could possibly have wanted to harm the unassuming beekeeper, she discovers an ever-expanding list of suspects—and they’re all buzzing mad. She’ll have to use all of her skills—and her Southern charm—to find her way out of this sticky situation...

Amanda Flower’s Cozy Club

Question?

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Deirdre Verne

"Verne's mystery is a winner, with plenty of twists and turns, an intriguing heroine, and an ending that shocks in more ways than one"
~Kirkus Reviews

"Verne imbues CeCe with intelligence and humor, and the snappy repartee between the characters is delightful."
~Mystery Scene Magazine

Midnight Ink

Laura Childs – Scrapbook Mysteries

The holidays are a busy time for scrapbook shop owner Carmela Bertrand—but not so hectic that she doesn’t have time to enjoy browsing the booths at the Winter Market with her best friend Ava. The last thing the ladies expect to see is a lurching man stabbed by a serving fork, dying in front of them.

The victim is loathed restaurant critic Martin Lash, who posted his scathing reviews on the Glutton for Punishment website. And the prime suspect is New Orleans restauranteur Quigg Brevard—who was seen giving the critic a tongue-lashing minutes before someone stuck a fork in him. An old flame of Carmela, Quigg asks for her help, which does not please her current beau, Detective Edgar Babcock, to say the least.

Before her relationship is the next victim, Carmela needs to find a murderer who had no reservations about punishing the culinary curmudgeon...

Retired Witches Mysteries by Joyce and Jim Lavene

With their coven’s spell book still missing, Molly and Elsie—along with their ghostly friend Olivia, her daughter Dorothy, and her boyfriend Brian—are all on edge, especially now that Dorothy’s infamously wicked father is back in the picture. So when they receive an invitation to an exclusive Witches Ball, the ladies jump at the chance to dress up and have some fun.

Like Joyce and Jim onFacebook And Follow Jim on Twitterand check out their Webpage to keep up on News about all their Books!!

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Renaissance Faire Mysteries by Joyce and Jim Lavene

When a fairy named Apple Blossom is found dead in the Good Luck Fountain at Renaissance Faire Village, Jessie Morton makes a wish she lives to regret--that her husband, Chase Manhattan, is no longer the Village Bailiff. She doesn't want him to look for the fairy's killer and ruin their plans to go away for their first wedding anniversary.

Trapped in a timeless 'It's a Wonderful Life' experience, Jessie is transported to a different Village to face the consequences of her wish where Chase isn't the Bailiff, and he's not married to her.

Jessie's fairy godmother who granted the wish tells her that she must find a way to make Chase fall in love with her again, and they must discover who killed Apple Blossom, if she ever wants to go back to the life she knew.

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